Revelations
by adr13
Summary: (Secrets Revealed) A drug bust, a secret and Big Chicken are a bad mix.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

**Author's note: Sorry for the re posts every one, it keeps getting deleted. **

* * *

McGarrett stood outside the ramshackle house as his men as his men and HPD cleaned it out. Over the last month ,5-0 had been tracking a tip that a large shipment of drugs was headed to the islands. Last night they had finally found where it was being stored until it could be delivered. They had gotten the necessary paper work to get a raid. It was successful, except they had not been able to get any buyers at the house. He mentally tallied the drugs and weapons as they were loaded into the car.

"Five kilos of heroin, 10 hand guns, 4 rifles and their ammo." The comment elicited a whistle from his men. He closed the trunk lid. "That should cripple someone's operation."

"Big Chicken?" Kono suggested.

"Most likely." McGarrett said, eying the two men that Williams and Kelly were placing in patrol cars. "I doubt we'll get much out of them."

"Lower level lackeys." Danny Williams agreed, walking over to them. "They seem too dumb to be running the operation, maybe they will flip on their boss."

McGarrett shrugged. "Maybe. You and Chin go to the station and book them."

Chin and Danny both nodded before getting into the latter's car and driving off with HPD.

* * *

McGarrett looked up as Chin Ho entered his office after a quick knock. He sat, a defeated look on his face.

"No luck?" McGarrett guessed.

The Oriental nodded. "They are more scare of Big Chicken or who ever their boss is than they are of us."

Steve leaned back in his seat. "So they wont flip. Go through their known associates, see if you can dig up something we can use as leverage."

"Sure thing Boss." Chin headed back to his office.

McGarrett stood and stared out the lanai door. There had to be a way to nail Chicken. He was tired of him running most of the drugs and prostitution on the island. He was going down, he would make sure of that.

* * *

He didn't want to tell him, his temper was well known in the islands to anyone that crossed him. How did he ever get into this? All he ever wanted was the next hit. Why did it have to be so complicated. He reached a skinny arm to rap on the door.

"What?" Came from the inside.

He cautiously entered the office. Big Chicken sat behind his desk, looking at him expectantly. "What is it Frankie?"

Why couldn't someone else be the messenger? He thought to himself. He ran a hand through his stringy red hair as he answered. "Mike and Ollie were picked up... McGarrett took the shipment."

Big Chicken's sweaty face flushed in anger. He pounded a fist against the desk, sending papers in all directions. "This is the last time he gets in my way!"

He sent the junkie Franky out of the room and picked up the phone. After giving a few short-tempered instructions, he hung up the phone. He stood with a smile. Now McGarrett would fall from his lofty perch, and he would do the pushing.

* * *

The annoying buzz of the alarm woke him. Steve McGarrett turned it off and rolled onto his back. The movement roused Julie Williams, she lay her head on his shoulder and curled snugly against his side. He held her tenderly, brushing his fingers through her hair.

Julie woke slowly, snuggled cozy in Steve's embrace. She loved him plain and simple. But she needed to tell Danny. Things were progressing quickly. They had spent the night together, not for the first time, but last night was different. Last night he had told her that he loved her. She admitted the same.

Danny had always been a little protective of her. He had lived with them several years and he was more like a brother than a cousin. Now he was worse because of the stalker incident. She wondered how he would react. She sighed, maybe she should tell him today.

Steve looked down at the sigh. "You OK?"

She smiled up at him. "Yeah, just thinking about stuff."

Julie snuggled closer, tracing her fingers over his chest. They encountered a raised scar on his side. Then another on his belly and his arm. She had noticed them before and always wondered what had happened. She shuttered involuntarily.

"What's wrong?" Steve caught her studying his scars. He knew that they bothered her.

Julie propped herself up on her elbow. "What happened?"

"I was shot." Steve said simply. He didn't want to bother her with the details, it would just upset her, especially the Trinian incident. "Some people don't like me."

She shot him a look saying that she was not impressed with his flippancy about it.

Steve gave her a winning smile and gave her a kiss. "Don't worry about it."

"I'm going to tell Danny today." she changed the subject, dropping her arm over his chest.

Steve nodded, relieved. He was finding it harder and harder not to say anything at work. At first, they didn't tell any one, in case it didn't pan out. But as their relationship progressed, she balked at telling her cousin. He didn't push her.

She propped her chin on his chest to look into his blue eyes. "We planned on going surfing today. You should come with us, we could tell him together."

"Oh Baby, you know I can't surf." He protested.

"Just come, you can swim or sit on the beach. What ever you want."

He couldn't say no to her and she knew it. He brushed her hair back and kissed her forehead. "OK."

Julie smiled broadly and swiftly gave him a kiss, before backing off the bed. "Great! Get ready, we are meeting at the beach at 8."

"What?" He groaned. "Can't we sleep in on a day off?"

"Perfect surfing hours." She went into her bathroom to get ready.

McGarrett got out of bed and gathered his stuff. "I'm going home to change. Where we meeting?"

"The North Shore." she called through the door.

"OK, I'll meet you there."

* * *

It was already pleasantly warm when Julie took her surf boards from the top of her car. She had brought a second one just in case she could get Steve out on on the waves. She smiled remembering the last time she had gotten him out there. The end result was comical.

She drug them out to the beach and staked out a place in the sand. She dropped on to her towel and went about waxing her board. A few minutes later Danny joined her. She smiled. "Morning Cuz."

"Morning." He carefully set his large cup of coffee in the sand before joining her. "How's work going?"

"OK, getting tired of waiting tables." she said. "One of my customers works at the art museum and suggested that I put in an application."

"Did you?"

"Yes, he said I could start next week if I wanted." _plus I could use the pay raise._

"Sounds like a good job." He grinned suddenly. "You could always work as a secretary at 5-0"

She laughed. "I think that might be a little on the stressful side." _But I could be with Steve more often. That would be great._

She glanced back to the road, watching for the large black car. It was still not here.

"Ready to tackle some waves?" Danny wondered what she was looking at each time that she looked over her shoulder. She was obviously tense over something.

"Definitely." She picked up the board that she had bought in California and headed out into the waves. She flopped on top of the board and paddled out to the nearest wave. She craved the rush from riding each wave and adored the cool rush of water as she dove under waves.

After a while, she could see a form sitting at the water's edge. She smiled, able to recognize her man, even at this distance. A sudden wave washed her off the board. She hadn't noticed that the wind had picked up. She surfaced a few feet away from her board. Grabbing onto it, she called to Danny. "I'm taking a break."

He acknowledged her with a wave and she turned back to shore. She the board in the sand and removed the tether from her ankle before sitting next to McGarrett. "Ready for your lesson?"

"Absolutely not." He chuckled. He glanced appreciatively at her dark blue two piece suit. It showed off her toned body perfectly.

Danny joined them. "Steve! I didn't think you were coming."

"I was out for a jog and decided to stop." McGarrett answered.

_Good cover. _She glanced over his jogging clothes, loving that he was wearing the red shirt that she had given him.

"You surfing today?" Danny asked.

"I don't think so, Danno." He said. "I like my dignity."

"Are you sure?" Julie had a flirting tone in her voice. "I just happen to have an extra board."

Steve seemed to be considering it.

"Why don't you just paddle out with us, you don't have to stand until you have your balance." Julie suggested.

To their great surprise, he agreed, and the trio started out. Once out in the waves, Julie lingered back with Steve as Danny took a wave.

"I take it you haven't said anything yet?" He said.

"Not yet. I wanted to wait for you." she glanced away from him, seeing a great wave forming.

"Go surf, you don't have to stay back here with me."

She resisted the urge to kiss him as she went after the wave. They surfed all morning. Julie smiled when Steve stood shakily on the board and ride over a wave like a kid on a bunny slope.

McGarrett watched them surf circles around him. He was amazed at the muscles it took to stay in control while standing. They made it look like they were standing on the ground. He managed a few more waves without looking like an idiot. He watched Julie take a huge wave as if it were nothing.

The surf had picked up all morning, and now the sky was graying. A storm was moving in. He was thinking that they should call it for the day.

Then it happened. As he was watching, Julie had just finished surfing a wave when a second one swelled behind her. She never saw it as it crashed down over her. "Julie!"

He waited for her to surface, but saw only the waves as they tossed her broken board back at them.

"Where did she go under?" Danno shouted.

Steve didn't pause to answer before he jumped in to the water, searching for her. Danno reached her first, grabbing her around the waist and taking her back to the surface. He followed, his tether wrapping around his leg uncomfortably. He watched as Danno flipped her onto his board and checked her over. He had a brief flash of déjà vu as he looked over at him.

"She's breathing." He reported.

Steve held onto the other side as her turned her head towards him. "She has a nice cut on her head."

"Yeah, let's get her back up on the shore." Danny said.

By the time they got to the beach, she was awake and talking to them. She slid off the board and stumbled through the shallows. "I'm OK guys."

McGarrett caught her arm to keep her from falling. "No, you're not. You have a cut on your head that needs to be checked out."

"No St-" Her stopped talking and winced when he touched the laceration that was still bleeding. She saw the worry in his eyes and felt awful that she couldn't hug him. She had messed up the day.

"And you were knocked out." Danny had already gathered up her stuff and took her arm. "You're going to get checked out."

Steve took their surf boards and latched them to Danny's car. She threw a glance at Steve as Dan got in his side. _I'm sorry._

* * *

Large drops of rain were falling when she got home later that afternoon. Her head was pounding as she unlocked the door.

"Are you sure that you don't want me to stay?" Danny asked, placing her remaining surf board in the corner of the room with the others. "You hit your head pretty hard."

"I am fine, Danny." she repeated for the fifth time. _I just want you to leave so I can call someone else._ "The doctor said I was good."

Danny gave her a doubtful look. "OK, just call if you need anything."

Julie gave him a reassuring smile. "I will."

As soon as the door closed behind him, she picked up the phone and called Steve. He was at her door in ten minutes.

She smiled when she saw him. "Steve, I told you that I was OK"

"I just wanted to check on you." He said as she closed the door.

"No stitches required, no concussion." Julie reported. "Just a head ache and minus one surf board."

"Please don't joke about it."

Julie could see that he was still tense with concern. She took his hand and lead him to the couch. "I'm OK, this happens all the time."

Steve gently touched her forehead, just under the bruise. He smiled. "I can still worry though."

She curled up on the couch and lay her head on his lap. As he caressed her hair, she said. "We didn't get to tell him."

"We will." he assured her. "Don't worry about it."

It didn't take her long to fall asleep. He kicked off his shoes, taking care to not wake her. He liked her apartment.

It was on the small side, but it was covered in her personality. The wood floors were partially covered in rugs of various size and color. The walls held little art work, just a large picture of the ocean. She kept her surf boards in the far corner of the living room, just to the right of a small T.V. The furniture was clearly second-hand, but comfy. Even though he couldn't see into the bedroom behind him, he knew that her bed was covered with rich, red covers and purple sheets. So very Julie.

* * *

Big Chicken flipped through the pictures and smiled. It had taken nearly a week to get them, but they were perfect. They should be the perfect wedge to cause distention in the ranks of 5-0. He put them in an envelope and handed it to the courier. "Make sure they get there or it will cost you."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

* * *

Danny arrived at the office on time Monday morning. He was happy to find the coffee pot full and hot. He poured a cup before sitting down at his desk. Jenny and Chin were already at their desks, working on various things. McGarrett's door was closed, he could see the light on Jenny's phone told him that he was on the phone.

Jenny walked by and lay a medium-sized manila envelope on his desk. "This came by messenger this morning."

"Thanks Jenny." he set it aside as he went through the memos and messages that were everywhere. Half an hour later he leaned back and sighed. Why leave a message if you were not planning on answering the phone when they called back?

He remembered the envelope and dumped the contents. Twenty or so glossy color photos landed on the desk. He looked at them confused. The pictures showed a couple in bed, clearly intimate. They looked like they had been taken with a zoom lens through a window.

On closer inspection, he could see the woman. It was his cousin, Julie! The man was not visible. Why had these been sent to him? He wanted to throw them away, burn them even, but who was the man? He moved the pictures around with a pencil eraser. Each shot was more compromising, each showing more of the man. The last five showed the man with perfect clarity.

He suddenly felt sick. Julie was in bed with Steve McGarrett! What was going on? He felt hot, anger building quickly. The bottom picture had a message scrawled across it. 'A good one for the papers? Or the governor?'`

"Danny are you OK?" Jenny asked.

"I-I'm fine." he grabbed all the photos, not wanting her to see them. He stormed into McGarrett's office, startling him.

"Morning Danno." McGarrett greeted before looking up. When he did, he was surprised at the seething anger he saw in his friend. "What's wrong?"

"You're dating Julie?" It was a statement, not a question. "How long?"

Steve was caught off guard by the question. She must have told him this morning. He moved across the room to close the door. He didn't need his private life flying through the ranks. "Danny, calm down."

"Calm down? You want me to calm down?" his voice rose a few notches. He glared at the man as he circled back to his desk. "You didn't even bother telling me, my 'best friend' and my cousin are dating and neither of you cared to let me know!"

"She didn't tell you.." Steve hesitated.

"Don't lay this on her!" Danny nearly shouted.

"Keep your voice down." Steve reprimanded sharply. He softened. "We were going to tell you."

Danny practically threw the pictures at him. They landed in a heap in front of his boss. "Those were on my desk this morning."

McGarrett starred at the pictures and immediately felt the urge to throw up. Who had taken them? Why were they sent to Danno? "Oh no.."

"How long?" Danny demanded again.

He had no more room to stall. He should have told him a long time ago. "Eight months."

Danny's jaw dropped. He didn't think it was that long. "Eight months."

Steve shoved the pictures under a file, he was tired of looking at them. "Look Danno, I'm sorry. We should have told you, that's my fault. I am sorry you had to find out like this."

"Are you using her?" Danny snapped.

"How can you ask me that?" He had not seen him this angry before. He could feel his own anger fueling.

Danny shouted. "You're too married to the job to care about anyone else."

McGarrett's temper flared.

"Admit it! You're longest relationship was less than a year. You are going to hurt her."

"I love her!" Steve shouted back, his ferocity startling the younger man.

The statement rocked Danny. No, it couldn't be true. He was just protecting himself. "You love 'em and leave 'em Steve!"

It took every muscle of control that McGarrett had to keep from punching his officer in the face. Instead, he shoved him out of the way and stormed across the room. They both needed to cool off. He flung the door open roughly and stomped passed the secretary.

"Boss, Duke call-"

"Not Now!" Steve left the outer office before the hurricane that was Danny Williams could follow.

He ignored his car as he left the Palace. He needed to clear his head, to calm down, he was fuming. _Does Danno really think that low of me?_ The words hurt, but the thought of losing a friend hurt worse.

_Who would have the gall to send those pictures? _As much as it sickened him to think of them, he tried to recall any detail that might help him. They looked to have been taken through the bed room window. But her apartment was on the second floor. She didn't have a lanai, so that was out. They must have been across the street in a store front or something and used a zoom lens. He shook his head. _I can't believe they sent those to Danno. Who would do that? At least they didn't follow up on the newspaper threat._

A screeching car horn mad him jump back up on the curb as a car swerved around him. He spied a nearby pay phone and decided to call her. He stepped over to the corner of the building and placed change into the slot. He tapped his foot until she answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey Julie." he suddenly felt tired.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"I blew it. Danno found out."

"How?" Her voice full of concern.

"I don't know." He hedged. It wasn't a total lie. "But I intend to find out."

"What aren't you telling me?" Julie asked.

_I swear that girl is psychic._ Steve shook his head in amazement. _I am not telling her about the pictures over the phone._ "Can I come over?"

"Oh Steve, I wish you could!" she sighed. "I'm getting ready to go to work. Remember I start that new job today, at the gallery. I have to be there at ten."

Steve looked at his watch, surprised that it was nine thirty. He had walked longer than he had thought. "That's OK, honey."

He was about to say he would meet her at her work when a sudden blow to back of his head sent him crashing into the phone stand. He groaned as his vision dissolved into wavy grayness, the phone slipped from his grasp and he collapsed to his knees.

Pain throbbed through his skull and he struggled to stay conscious. McGarrett saw two men reaching down for him. He swung his fist, satisfied to feel the crunch of it connecting with one of the men's nose.

The other man caught his wrist and yanked hard, flinging McGarrett against the dirty concrete.

Steve yelped as the force wrenched his shoulder from its socket. Another blow landed against his head and he passed out.

The two men reached down to pick up the unconscious detective. "I think he broke my nose."

"Quit wining." The burly man snapped. "We got the pig, now we get his girl."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

* * *

"Steve?" Julie repeated into the phone. Had they lost the connection? As she listened carefully, she could hear a scrapping noise, a scuffle? Then there was a grunt of pain followed by silence. Her first instinct was to call out to him again, but a sense of foreboding told her not to. She could hear the muffled sound of men's voices.

"...got the pig. Now we get his girl."

Her blood ran cold. He was being kidnapped! She gently replaced the phone on the hook. She had to do something, and it was not wait around until they came for her. She picked up her purse and cleaned out her stash of cash, she wasn't leaving that for them either. She drove quickly to the Palace, hoping that she was merely over reacting.

As she moved up the dark wood stairs, she was thankful for the guards that she saw. The tension was thick in the 5-0 offices. It wasn't hard to figure out where it was coming from.

The secretary, Jenny, gave her a look just short of a glare, telling her that he was stressing everyone in the office. "Can I help you?"

Julie shook her head and stepped over to Danny's office. She took a deep breath, ready for the squall. "Danny.."

His stormy eyes glared into her. He practically launched himself out of his seat, grabbing her arm and shoved her into McGarrett's empty office.

"Eight months! Eight months you have been dating my boss and you couldn't find the time to tell me!" Danny worked hard to keep from yelling. "How could you let him sweep it under the rug?"

They did not have the time for this. She interrupted. "I wasn't Steve, it was me. If you want to be angry at someone, be angry at me, Steve didn't do anything."

He fell silent, waiting to hear the explanation.

"It was me, I didn't want you to worry." She felt awful, she knew it was a lame excuse. "He wanted to tell you a long time ago, but I stopped him."

Danny stood silently, unsure of what to say.

"But none of that is important right now." she continued. "Something happened to Steve."

"What?" Until now, he hadn't paid attention to him being gone.

"He called me, he was upset at what happened." Julie began. "He suddenly stopped talking and I heard scuffling noises. Then a groan, it got real quiet after that. I could just hear them talking. A man said 'got the pig, now to get his girl.'"

"When was this?" Danny asked.

"About 15 minutes ago. I left as soon as it happened." she answered.

He stamped down his remaining anger and opened the door to the outer office. "Chin, Kono, get in here. We have a situation."

* * *

Black gradually turned to gray. The pain in his head pounded like the ocean, each wave gaining strength. He moved trough the layers of consciousness like surfacing in the water. He became aware of his surroundings. He knew he was laying on the ground, he knew he was on his side. What he didn't know where he was or who had grabbed him.

McGarrett opened his eyes, blinking against the blurriness. Judging from the rows of heavy hooks on the wall and built-in shelving, he was in some kind of storage room. He was laying against the wall furthest from the door in the small 9X9 room.

He didn't have to move his arms very much to discover that they were tightly cuffed behind him. The metal bit roughly into his wrists. Trying to roll into a sitting position caused pain to lance though his right arm and shoulder. He bit his lip until it became a dull throb.

_They must have dislocated it when they threw me down._ _How am I getting out of this one?_

The door was most likely bolted from the outside, so there was nothing he could to about that. He steeled himself and forced himself up, ignoring his shoulder. He scooted into the far corner and waited.

* * *

Julie told her story to the men, ending with the phone call. She looked at the desk top as she spoke, she never wanted anyone to find out this way, she felt like she was embarrassing Steve. She quickly wrapped it up with the phone call.

Danny tramped down his resentment as he heard the story. "We need to find out which phone he called you from. Chin get a hold of the phone company, find the phone. Kono get an APB out on Steve. We need to find who snatched him, quickly."

They left to obey. Danny turned to his cousin. "Call your boss, you aren't leaving this building until we find out who is behind this."

Julie nodded, she had no arguments about that. She dropped heavily into Steve's chair and rubbed her head. _ Where are you Steve? Are you hurt?_ She remembered vividly her own abduction, almost two years ago. She sniffed, praying that the same thing was not happening to him.

Glancing back down at the desktop, a corner of a picture that was sticking out from under a file caught her eye. She had a lamp just like that. She tugged it out, shocked when she saw what it was. She gasped at the caption.

Danny looked over from the doorway where he'd been talking to Jenny. He rushed over to relieve her of them.

Julie looked up at him, speechless. "Where.."

Danny gathered up all the pictures and took the one from her hand. "Julie, please. Go wait in my office."

The pieces fell into place, that's how Danny found out. That was the hitch in Steve's voice. "This is all my fault."

Danny stood her up and guided her out of the room and into his office. "No it's not. Just wait in here."

He stepped back in the office, swearing that he would burn the pictures and throw the ashes in Diamond Head. He shuffled through the files and memos on top of the desk, looking for anything that might help.

"APB is out, everyone is looking. Chief Dann is putting out extra men." Kono reported.

"Talk to everyone, witnesses, informants. Someone saw something." Danny brushed his hand through his hair. "Let's go."

Danny waited until an uniformed officer arrived to guard Julie before hitting the streets with the men to start canvasing.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

* * *

"What do you mean, 'she's not there'?" Big Chicken snarled into the phone.

"She's not at her apartment, and when we went to her job, they said that she called in."

Big Chicken slammed the phone down with out another word. He knew that she had to be at 5-0, under their protection. He would have to change his plans. But no matter, time for some fun with his guest. He left the office and crossed the small office/warehouse to the back store-room. He motioned to the guard to stay outside.

His guest sat in the far corner of the room, coiled and ready to spring. When they had brought him in, they had stripped him of his jacket, gun and badge before cuffing him. Just in case he had any tricks. Now, Chicken stood in the middle of the room.

"Ah, hello Mr. McGarrett, glad to see you alert."

McGarrett practically growled. "Big Chicken, I should have know."

"I am sorry that you are here alone, I had originally planned for you to have company." He chucked as McGarrett's face darkened in suspicion and anger. "Yes, I know all about your little girlfriend. It seems she gave my men the slip."

"Don't you touch a hair on her you filthy –" McGarrett snarled.

Chicken didn't wait to hear the end. He stepped in with a strong punch to the cop's face. Steve's head bounced off the wall. He recovered quickly and launched to his feet, head butting Chicken in his thick middle.

Chicken stumbled backwards but kept his footing. He brought his knee up as McGarrett's momentum carried him into it. He fell down, gasping as the breath was knocked out of him. Chicken gave him a few swift kicks in the torso. "You will do nothing. I am in charge now!"

With one last kick to the already groaning man, he turned and left the room.

* * *

Chin found the phone fairly quickly. He radioed in and once forensics arrived, started knocking on doors to find witnesses. His frustrations grew with each interview. A man is grabbed in broad daylight and no one saw anything. Finally he found a lady who thought she saw a man who fit Steve's description being loaded into a light-colored car, but could not give a description of the men or of the car.

He sat in his car, plotting his next move. Should he go out and shake up a few snitches? See what they knew? Or go back to the office to regroup?

His thoughts turned to his boss. He hadn't been to surprised when he found out that his boss had been dating, he had noticed the subtle signs. What did get him was who he had been seeing. Everyone in the office had heard the argument that morning. He had been on the phone when Danny's voice pitched from the office. He looked out to see what the commotion was just as McGarrett had stormed out of the office. Minutes later Danny had phone back to his own cubical, muttering choice words.

Danny had seemed to calm down during the briefing, his concern for his boss's well-being over ridding his anger. But he knew that the emotions were still simmering under the surface, just waiting for a change to bubble back to the surface.

Che Fong came over to the car. "We have some clear fingerprints on the phone, and a few small blood drops on the concrete. We wont know if it's Steve's until we get back to the lab. Other that, we didn't find anything. Who ever grabbed him got away fairly clean."

"OK, pack it in. Call us as soon as you find something."

"We will." Che promised.

* * *

Julie found Danny's small office not conducive to pacing. Feeling caged, she treaded back and forth in the main office.

_This whole mess is my fault. They argued because of me. I separated good friends. Steve went out in the open, if they hadn't fought, he would still be here. I am a coward, I should have said something a long time ago. He had never pushed her to tell but now she wished that he had. She prayed that he wasn't hurting. _Her stomach started to churn from worry. _ I should have told him._

She flopped down into a chair with an anguished cry. Tears came unbidden.

Jenny watched her from her desk. She had no idea what to say to the girl. She had listened at the door when she had told her story. She was surprised that she had been dating the boss, they had been very careful. Of course she had noticed the boss leaving the office earlier than normal for him. He had also been in a better mood. "They will find him. They always do."

Julie looked up with red rimmed eyes. Deep down she knew that the secretary was correct. They were the best in the islands. But what would happen to him in the mean time?

* * *

Danny's car sat in front of the Palace. He had been there for some time but didn't have the heart to go in._ How can I go in there and tell her that I turned up nothing?_

_This is all my fault. Why did I have to pick a fight with him? What was so wrong with her dating him? Nothing. She could do a lot worse. _

He sighed and slammed the car door shut. He dragged himself across the parking lot and up into the Palace.

Julie was on him the moment he walked in the doors. "Danny, did you find anything?"

Danny hung his head, then shook it. He could feel all eyes in the office on him. "No, not yet."

She tried to keep the disappointment off her countenance. She knew they were all doing their best. "Is there any thing I can do?"

Danny smiled. "Not right now."

Chin joined them in Steve's office. "I found the phone. Che is going over everything, but there's not much. One lady saw a light-colored car, but wouldn't swear on it."

"It's not much." Danny agreed. He passed, pausing to stare out the lanai door. "If it was for ransom, why haven't they called?"

"Revenge." Chin put in. "That's a big list too.""

"It's almost seven hours since he disappeared."

"What if there is no reason?" Julie said, almost to herself. "what if it's just random."

Danny and Chin exchanged a glance. Both men had thought of that angle, both prayed that it wasn't the case. Then it could be near impossible to find him. "Let's hope not."

Danny snapped his fingers at a sudden thought. "Chin, check to see if there are any recent paroles that could be holding a grudge."

Chin nodded and went to obey. Danny started going through Steve's desk looking for any new threats that he might have received from the mail. They all kept every piece of hate mail that they received, just in case they ever needed it. Steve had a habit of not sharing them with every one.

He dug through the drawers, his fingers coming in contact with something small and fuzzy. His eyes widened when he saw it and he slammed the drawer shut before anyone else could see it. "Hey Julie, why don't you go use my office phone and order us some dinner, ask Chin as well. Jenny can pick it up."

"Oh I can pick it up." Julie offered. She was dying to get out of the Palace.

"No, we can't risk it." Danny refused. "You are still a target."

Julie rolled her eyes and left the room with out answering.

As soon as the door closed he opened it again. He took out the small box and opened it. Sure enough, there was a small diamond ring nestled inside. His stomach churned at the emotions he was experiencing. He was such and idiot. He had a world of apologizing to do when he found him.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

* * *

Steve woke, He had fallen asleep at some point. His body was sore, but he didn't think there was any permanent damage from the kicks. He had to find a way out. But with his shoulder, fighting through the guards left-handed was not appealing. If he could figure out where he was, maybe he could get a message to Danno.

Danno... surely they knew he was gone. He hoped that Julie was safe and that she stayed out Chicken's reach. He'd give anything to be in her arms right now.

He looked up as the door to his prison opened. Big Chicken and another, taller man stepped into the room. He could see a third man remain in the hall as they closed the door.

Chicken stared down at his captive moment before speaking. "Mr. McGarrett, I hope you are enjoying our accommodations."

McGarrett didn't speak. His eyes darted around, gaging if he could get the upper hand.

"No comments? OK, down to business then." Chicken continued. He looked to the other man. "Tom."

Tom stepped forward and reached down for McGarrett.

Steve kicked out defensively. This angered the tall man. He grabbed his foot just before it connected and used it to drag McGarrett into the middle of the room. He flipped him onto his stomach.

Chicken placed his foot on the back of Steve's neck to keep him in down. "Stop fighting us."

Tom the thug roughly removed McGarrett's tie and used it to restrain his feet.

Chicken gave the still struggling cop a light kick in his already hurt shoulder. When he stilled, he spoke. "Where are my drugs?"

Steve stared mutely. No was he was tell the nut where the police lockup was located.

"This will go easier if you'll cooperate. Tell me where the shipment and weapons are and I'll let you go."

"Yeah right." McGarrett muttered.

"OK tell me and I will let you're woman live."

McGarrett kept his face neutral. He couldn't show any weakness towards her, no matter how much it pained him, or he would exploit it. He knew that his men would keep her safe.

"No? Don't care about her like that?" Chicken laughed. "What about your lap dog, Williams?"

"If you hurt any one, you will die." Steve said through clenched teeth.

Chicken sighed. He was tired of dealing with good guys, they grated on his nerves, pretending to be honorable. "Tom?"

Tom stepped forward and gave the cop a solid punch to his face that caused his ears to ring.

"Where is my shipment?" Chicken shouted.

His silence earned him two more punches.

"Really McGarrett! No one has standards like you hold. If you give in, no one will think twice about it."

Another few minutes of silence, he sighed and headed to the door. "Have it your way McGarrett."

As he left the room, Chicken nodded to his man. Tom stepped up and kicked him several times in his chest before he was able to curl into a protective ball.

* * *

McGarrett was refusing to cooperate. Big surprise there. He would have to have a different approach. Tomorrow morning he would make the call.

* * *

"I'm scared Danny." Julie stated. "I'm scared for Steve."

"I'm worried too." Danny admitted. "But he's tough. I've seen him pull though some stuff."

"What happened to him?" she asked.

Danny gave her a questioning look.

"His scars, he said he was shot."

"A man named Trinian wanted revenge and gunned him down on the beach while he was jogging. We got Trinian before he could kill the attorney general." Williams explained. "Steve had just gotten back to work when you came for your visit."

"That's horrible!"

Kono came in, interrupting with a quick knock. "Caught a small break. A guy said that he saw a light-colored car in front of the Palace this morning. The drivers fit the description of two hoods known to work for hire. Tommy Hukili and Lanni Sims."

"OK, let's go pick them up." Danny was itching to get out and get some action. "Chin stay here with Julie."

They were about to leave when Jenny called after them. "Danny the governor wants to meet with you."

Danny sighed. "OK fine. Kono take a uniform with you."

"I'll stay until you get back Danny."

"Thanks Chin." Danny checked his watch, surprised to see that it was nearly seven.

* * *

Steve struggled to move his arms around his hips. His shoulder screamed in protest at the movements. He clinched his jaw tightly to keep from making any noise. He didn't want to alert them to his movements before he was ready. After a few minutes he was able to get his cuffed hands in front of him. He took a few deep breaths trying to control his breathing. He untied his feet.

Steve could not see out the high window of his prison. He couldn't discern anything of a location from the room. It looked like most store rooms. He searched around the room for something to use to open the cuffs or use as a weapon. They were not stupid, the room was clean. The hooks were bolted to the wall with bolts as big as his thumb, the cabinets had padlocks on them.

He could hear the guard pace in front of the door. He pounded his fist against the wall, just loud enough to attract the attention of the man outside. Sure enough the guard came in to investigate the racket.

"Quiet in here!" he stopped, surveying the empty room for the captive.

McGarrett swung his hands against the man's neck. He went down, flinging his arm out and taking Steve with him. McGarrett recovered first and kneed him in the jaw. The man was unconscious before he hit the ground.

McGarrett dragged the unconscious man into the room and closed the door. He searched the hall.

He was in a large open warehouse. The wall he was leaning against had three more doors in it. Crates and cars were scattered around the open space. He could see Big Chicken and some of his men on the far side of the building near the entrance. He opened the door closest to him and found a small bathroom. The next was an office with a phone. He ducked into the room and closed the door.

He looked out the window warehouse, but no landmarks. He moved to the desk and looked for mail or documents that would show the address. Nothing. Hearing men's voices growing closer, he picked up the phone and quickly dialed 5-0.

"Hawaii 5-0." Jenny chirped.

"Jenny, It's McGarrett just listen. I'm in a ware house somewhere. I can see Aloha Industries on another building. Big Chicken is behind it, tell Danno –" McGarrett heard the voices right outside the door and hung up the phone. He ran for the window. He never expected to make it out, he didn't want them to catch him with the phone.

Just as he got the window up, he was yanked backwards by his collar. He was thrown up against the wall.

"How did you get out!" Chicken roared. "you almost more trouble than you are worth."

Chicken grabbed McGarrett's hair and yanked his head up, at the same time he pulled a gun from his waist band and pressed it under his chin. "Try something like that again and I will shoot you dead. Then I will go kill your whore. Understand?"

McGarrett nodded hesitantly. He hated being in a position of weakness..

"Good. Tie him back up and make sure to do a better job this time."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

* * *

"Boss?" Jenny nearly shouted into the phone. She heard only the dial tone. She quickly grabbed a note pad and wrote down everything he had said. She hurried over to Chin's cubical. "Chin, Steve just called!"

Chin came out of his seat, reading the paper. "Call Danny at Jameson's office. They need to know."

* * *

Danny was ready to bang his head against the wall. They had looked for this Aloha Industries all night. They had located eight of them so far and no one was awake, in town or willing to cooperate. Several claimed not to have warehouses or that they were on another island. Even Julie was calling around trying to gather information.

Julie slammed the phone down and stood. She could hardly stand it. They had a lead and couldn't do anything with it. She stared out the lanai door, watching the traffic outside.

Danny looked over at her, noticing the familiar stance. Steve often did the same thing with mulling over a problem. Before he could comment on it, the private line rang. He picked it up. "Williams, 5-0."

"Mister Williams." came an oily voice.

Danny felt like cursing. "Big Chicken."

"Looks like I out smarted the great McGarrett and his men."

"What do you want?" Danny asked angrily. "Where's Steve?"

"This is what I want Williams." Big Chicken's intoned. "I want my heroin and guns back. Plus ten grand."

"How do I know McGarrett is still alive?" Danny countered. "I want proof of life."

"You cops are so predictable. Mr. McGarrett, please say something to your lap dog."

Julie held her breath, waiting for an answer. She heard shuffling, then silence. What was happening?

"Say something McGarrett." the drug dealer's voice had a hard edge to it. They heard a thump followed by a grunt and gasping.

Julie bit her lip to stay quiet. She didn't want to get kicked out of the room.

After a few more grunts, the tired but firm voice they'd longed to hear came over the speaker. "Do not give him the drugs Danno." was all he was able to get out. More sounds of a beating ensued.

Tears trickled from her eyes. She couldn't stand the sound of his pain. Her stomach lurched threateningly. She bolted out of the office.

"Stop it!" Danny nearly shouted into the phone. He motioned for Jenny to follow his cousin. "We will not trade if he is dead."

"You have two hours." Chicken said before hanging up.

* * *

Julie crashed through the restroom doors and quickly emptied the contents of her stomach. She was still dry heaving when Jenny caught up to her.

"Julie?"

"I'm OK" She took a moment to compose herself before exiting the stall. The secretary was leaning against the wall, waiting distractedly.

Julie cleaned up then went back to the office and continued with the paper work that she'd been doing before the call. A paper on top drew her attention.

Danny was on the phone with HPD. "I don't care, get them ready. As soon as we get the location, we are going."

"I found it." Julie cried. She ran to the map and circled a place. "There is a small cluster of warehouses here that are scheduled to be demolished in the near future. One of them used to belong to Aloha Industries."

Danny repeated everything to Chief Dann. "Let's move out."

"I'm coming too." Julie insisted.

"No, we don't have time to argue about this." Danny said.

"I'll stay in the car." she insisted. "Please let me come. I can't just wait around here any longer."

Danny sighed, knowing he was never going to win. "Fine, but you stay in the car."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

* * *

Big Chicken yanked the phone out of the wall and threw it across the room. He had heard through an inside man that McGarrett had gotten a phone call to his office. He stormed into the next room, seeing McGarrett standing in the far corner of the room.

McGarrett saw the man's anger and smirked. "What's the matter Chicken? You –"

Chicken grabbed him by his hair and threw him to the ground, cursing at him. McGarrett managed to kick him once in the shin, but the larger man managed to stay on his feet. He had the advantage over the cuffed police officer.

The man kicked him over and over. McGarrett couldn't keep back the scream as his ribs cracked under the pressure. He tried to roll out-of-the-way, to deflect the abuse to his legs or arms, but Chicken had him against the wall. The onslaught didn't stop. A foot to the stomach made him retch. He prayed that he wouldn't die here, not like this. Just when he thought it would never stop, her heard a welcome sound: Police sirens.

Chicken growled in anger, determined to kill the officer. He punched him hard in the face, nearly knocking him out. Then he wrapped his beefy hands around McGarrett's throat, applying crushing pressure. Steve began to black out.

"Police!" Danny shouted as he burst in the door, followed by twenty HPD officers. "Let him go!"

The man gave one last sneer and slammed McGarrett's head against the ground. He quickly stood, holding his hands up in surrender.

"What's the problem, Mr. Williams?" Chicken panted.

Kono and Chin holstered their weapons and stepped forward to cuff him. Danny ran to their fallen leader. "Get an ambulance!"

"Steve, can you hear me?" Danny reached for the semi conscious man, gently setting him up against the wall as he coughed and choked for breath. He looked like he had been beaten severely. Bruises were already showing on his arms, and from the way he had his arm crossed protectively across his torso, he had some cracked ribs. He noticed his right arm hung awkwardly at his side. Broken?

"I'm OK Danno." McGarrett gasped painfully.

_Typical Steve._ "Try not to move to much, we have an ambulance coming."

"Julie?" Steve struggled to stand.

"She's OK" Danny began. "We kept her at the Palace."

Steve grabbed his shoulder, looking him in the eye. "I'm sorry, Danno, I was wrong."

Danny swallowed down the lump in his throat. He didn't know what to say. "Julie is in the car, she wants to see you." He grinned. "It seems like your stubbornness rubbed off on her."

"She came with that stubbornness." Steve stood with the aid of Danny and Duke. He wavered a bit, trying to gain his balance. Williams helped him walk out.

* * *

Julie watched anxiously from the car as they brought several men out in hand cuffs. But no Steve. What happened, was he hurt? Where was Danny? She got out of the car, ready to storm past the line of blue for answers.

As she stood there, she saw them exit. Steve's clothes were dirty and his shirt untucked for probably the first time in history. He was leaning heavily on Danny. She barreled across the lot. "Steve!"

McGarrett looked up, hearing the voice he'd longed for. She stopped just short of slamming into them and hugged him frantically.

"Steve! Oh thank goodness that you are OK"

Steve held her tightly, ignoring the burning pain in his ribs. HPD officers milled around them, pretending not to notice the couple. Others didn't care, starring in out right surprise. He didn't care any more. His body was shaky and he wasn't sure how long he could stand. He kissed her hard on the lips, ignoring the whistles from some brave HPD men. "I love you Julie."

"I love you too." she grinned. She didn't have much time to think about it. In the next moment, Steve's legs buckled. Danny stepped forward to help her ease him to the ground.

Julie sat behind him and kept him propped up while they waited for the medics.

Danny noticed blood trickling down the back of Steve's collar. His probing fingers encountered a small gash on his friend's head. Probably from when it was slammed into the ground.

Steve moaned and attempted to smack the offending hand away. His body ached all over, he just wanted to sleep. He rested his head on her shoulder.

Danny touched his shoulder. Jerking it away when he yelped in pain. "I'm sorry Steve."

Steve gritted his teeth. "I think it's dislocated."

"Sorry." He hadn't meant to cause pain. "But you need to stay wake, you may have a concussion."

Steve nodded slowly, careful not to let his head drop to far. He was dizzy enough as it was.

Danny stood, leaving to take over the crime scene. He knew that he was in good hands.

Julie held him gently. She wondered the extent of his injuries, he looked a little rough. She was so glad to have him back. She kissed his forehead. "Are you OK?"

Steve nodded. "Just a little banged up."

The ambulance arrived. The medics evaluated him before helping him climb into the ambulance. Danny watched, his concern growing. Steve wasn't fighting about going to the hospital. He must be really hurt.

* * *

Julie sat uncomfortably in the ER waiting room. Danny sat next to her, Kono and Chin sat opposite of them. They were discussing the evidence found at the warehouse and what Big Chicken was threatening.

"Believe it or not, Big Chicken is trying to use the insanity plea." Chin commented.

Kono laughed. "Yeah that is why he planned ahead, followed Steve and called in a ransom."

"He was trying to clean house when we arrived." Danny glanced at Julie, choosing his words carefully. "He would have killed Steve if we hadn't arrived when we did."

Julie shuttered. They had come so close to loosing him. She still had a hard time believe that people could hurt each other like that. She leaned her head against the wall and quickly fell asleep.

Three hours later they received good news. He would be out in no time. He had five injured ribs, two cracked and three broken. One of the broken ribs had scraped against his lung and almost punctured it. He had some minor bleeding in his abdomen that had been easily repaired. The dislocated shoulder had been reset. His head was fine, moderate concussion but no stitches required. They were keeping him a few days just to keep an eye on him.

"Can I see him?" Julie asked impatiently.

The doctor nodded. "He should be waking up soon."

They followed the doctor down the hall to the room. The orderlies were just settling him onto the bed.

Julie sat next to him, kissing his forehead. Danny was standing at the foot of the bed, flanked by Kono and Chin standing just behind him. She smiled at them. They would be alright, they were ohana.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

* * *

Three days later McGarrett was to be released from the hospital. He spent the morning harassing everyone from the doctor to the candy striper. When Julie arrived to drive him home, the day nurse looked ready to hit him with the next available object.

"Steve!" Julie admonished. She smiled sympathetically at the frazzled nurse. "I'll take care of this."

The woman shoved a clip board into Julie's hands and left the room with out a word.

"You're late." He commented.

Julie paused, his choice of words throwing her off. No way he could know, he wasn't that smart. She ignored his comment and continued. "Steve, you need to stop bothering the staff."

"They've done nothing but poke, prod and wake me up for three days and nights." Steve gestured to the door, wincing as it pulled at his ribs. "Did you bring my clothes."

Julie plopped the duffel bag and the clipboard on the bed. She lay a kiss on his lips. "Yes grumpy."

McGarrett pulled her to him and kissed her longingly. He felt bad and he was taking it out on every one else. "I'm sorry love."

He changed into the khakis and Aloha shirt that she's brought. Just as he finished all the paper work needed to check out, the doctor appeared with a wheel chair.

"I'm not riding in that." McGarrett stated.

The doctor rolled his eyes. "Hospital policy."

"No, there is nothing wrong with my legs." he stated emphatically. He slipped his hand around Julie's arm and walked out of the room.

The doctor didn't argue, just happy that he was leaving.

As they walked, pain throbbed in his chest. He bit the inside of his lip against the spasms. In the elevator, he moved his hand to her shoulder. Julie checked him out discreetly. His face looked to be set in stone and had a fine sheen of perspiration. He was hurting, more than he was willing to admittedly the time they got to the car, he was shaking.

* * *

Steve lounged on the patio chair, enjoying the evening. He adjusted to relieve some pressure on his ribs. He could hear Julie in his apartment, cleaning everything in sight. He fingered the box in his pocket. Danny had slipped it to him that morning, with his blessing. That made a huge difference to him. "Julie, come out here and relax."

Julie was in the bathroom, starring in the mirror, trying to think of a way to tell him. Her visit to the doctor this morning only confirmed what she's already suspected. She heard him calling and joined him on the patio. She sat down on the lounge chair next to him and lay her head on his shoulder.

She would never tire of evenings like this, sitting together watching the sun go down. The sky turned various shades of red, orange and pink, casting a warm glow over the island. It was almost magical.

Steve reached his arms around her, hugging her tightly. He kissed her neck before he nuzzled his face against her skin. "Julie?"

"Yes?" she giggled at his kisses.

"Will you marry me?"

Julie gasped at the sight of the ring he held. She felt a tear escape her eye a roll down her cheek, her heart pounded in her chest. "Yes," her voice cracked. "Yes I'll marry you."

McGarrett slipped the ring on her finger. It was a perfect fit. She turned to hug him tightly. "I love you."

"I love you more." He said between kisses.

Julie shifted and lay her head on his shoulder. He put his arms around her shoulders. They sat there for sometime before she decided to tell him. "What do you want, a boy or a girl?"

McGarrett thought over the question for a moment before it hit him. She said _do you want,_ not _would you want_... He looked down at her. "Do you mean – ?"

"Yes, I'm pregnant." Julie smiled radiantly, watching a look of pure joy spread over his face.

Steve pulled her up on his lap and kissed her heartily. He was happier than he'd been in his entire life. They were going to be a family.


End file.
